Slab and cant mill

ABSTRACT

A Slab and Cant Mill for cutting of lumber from whole logs and having a log carriage with log dogging device, multiple saws, a cant trough with saw and a &#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;V&#39;&#39;&#39;&#39; trough.

United States Patent Roberson et al.

[ Dec. 18, 1973 l l l 1 SLAB AND CANT MILL Inventors: Richard E. Roberson, Dubach; Richard E. Roberson, Jr., New Orleans, both of La.

Filed: July 8, 1971 Appl. No.: 144,054

US. Cl 83/4044, 83/707, 83/4351,

' 83/4252 Int. Cl. B27b 7/00, B27b 29/08 Field of Search 143/117, 52 R, 52 A,

143/37 R, 37 B, 48 R; 73/404.4, 707, 424, 425.2, 435, 435.1

[5 6 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,803,272 8/1957 Crosby 143/117 436,420 9/1890 Hodgson 143/117 Primary Examiner-Donald R. Schran [57] ABSTRACT A Slab and Cant Mill for cutting of lumber from whole logs and having a log carriage with log dogging device, multiple saws, a cant trough with saw and a V trough.

8 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures PATENTED BE!) 1 SHEET 1 or 3 PATENTEDUEC 1a 1975 3.779.117

sum 2 or 3 SLAB AND CANT MILL The Slab and Cant Mill is a new concept whereby lumber is cut from whole logs. By this invention, equipment, less complicated than used in a conventional sawmill, is utilized to grasp and pass, in on handling, a whole log through mulitple saws thereby cutting cants. As with the conventional sawmill, the cants can be passed through edging, triming and planing machines in order to manufacture the desired sized lumber.

In the operation of a conventional sawmill, a log is loaded onto the carriage, dogged, set and passed by the saw in order to produce a slab or cant. The carriage is returned and the log repositioned, set and passed by the saw again. This process continues until sawing of the log is completed. Some of the equipment used in the operation of a conventional sawmill to perform this work is alog loader, log turner, carriage headblocks, dogs and setworks, and a means of moving the carriage such as steam gun, water gun, etcJThis equipment is complicated, expensive to purchase and operate, and requires skill to operate.

It is the primary object of this invention to provide a mill that is simplein design and operation, that is less expensive to construct and operate than conventional sawmills, that uses a majority of standard parts, that eliminates the need of the log loader, log turner and setworks, that processes different size and length logs, that maximizes board feet cut from a log, and that is efficient in the production of cants for use in the manufacture of lumber.

It is another object of this invention to arrange and space a multiple of saws whereby alog is sawed into slabs and cants of desired thickness with only one trip past the saws.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a simple dogging device to hold the log while it is passed by the saws. This dogging device when employed in conjunction with the multiple saw arrangement eliminates the need for conventional carriage setworks.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a simple means whereby the log is placed in position where the dogging device grasps the log in a simple, single motion.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a means whereby the last cant of the log can be sawed into two cants witout the need of another operator.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a Slab and Cant Mill that will produce more lumber of a wider width and more board feet per hour than can be produced with the conventional mill.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become readily apparent from reading the following description and considering the related drawings.

FIG. 1 is a side view of the Slab and Cant Mill.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the arrangement of the saws showing the V" trough and the cant trough and rollers.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the carriage showing a more detailed drawing of the carriage and the dogging mechanisms.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the base upon which the dogging mechanisms are mounted.

FIG. 5 is an end view of the cant trough and the idler rollers.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are views front and side of the fingers.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the dog.

FIG. 9 is an end view of the Slab and Cant Mill.

FIG. 10 is an end view showing the multiple saws.

FIG. 11 is an end view showing the fingers, cant and saws.

Referring to the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2 present an overall view of the Slab and Cant Mill which covers a distance of more than feet. From the drawings certain parts of the mill can be identified: the saws 1,2,4,6,8, the carriage 5 loaded with log 7, track 3, V" trough 9, cant trough 31, frame 21, idler rollers 19, stop 20, carriage wheels 28. The V. trough 9 extends the same length-of the mill that the carriage 5 travels. The

V trough 9 narrows in width as it extends, centered, between the saws 2,4,6,8. Each saw is mounted on a saw mandrel and is provided with a saw guide (not shown) to hold the saw in place and proper alignment. A belt fitted to thepulley on each saw mandrel will be used to transfer power to operate the saws 1,2,4,6,8.

The carriage 5 along with track 3, V trough 9 and main base 17 are shown in more detail by FIGS. 3 and 4. The carriage 5 has four sets of wheels 28 and axles 27. The second axle from the rear, wheel 28A, does not extend the entire distance across the carriage 5. The log 7 is attached to carriage 5 by :a front dog 10 and a rear dog 10A. FIG. 8 isa side view of a dog showing a shaft made in dog at 108, a hole set in top of dog at 10C and dog teeth 10D. The front dog shaft 10B is journaled in bearings and mounted on main base 17. Cylinders 13 are anchored to base plate 17 while the cylinder rods are connected to front dog 10 at hole 10C. By operating cylinders 13 the front dog can be raised into the carriage 5, free to pass over a log or cant, or lowered into position to grasp a log. As pressure is applied to cylinders 13, the top of dog 10 moves toward the rear of the carriage 5 while the teeth of the dog moves away from the log and the dog is raised into the carriage 5. The rear dog 10A is anchored to the rear base 18 in the same mariner as front dog 10, and cylinders 15 raise and lower rear dog 10A; however rear dog 10As direction of movement is the reverse of the front dog 10.

The rear base 18, upon which the rear dog 10A and cylinders 15 are anchored, is made so that it can be moved forward and backward. Cylinders 14 are anchored to, base 17 while cylinder rods are linked to the rear base 18. When pressure is applied to cylinders 14, base 18 moves to rear of carriage. When cylinder pres sure is reversed, rear base 18 moves forward thereby causing front dog 10 and rear dog 10A to grasp the log. The movement of rear base 18 makes it possiblefor the mill to accommodate different length logs. As the rear base 18 moves forward and backward, rear dog 10A travels in slot 16. Carriage wheels 28A are mounted on short axles so as not to interfere with slot 16.

FIG. 6 shows an end view of the fingers which are mounted on front of carriage. There are two fingers that are connected together at the top with a space between them on the lower portion which allows the fingers to pass over and beside saw 1. A shaft is made in fingers at 118 and a hole is set in fingers at 11A. The shaft 11B is journaled in bearings and anchored to base 17 at the front of carriage 5. Cylinders 12 are anchored to base 17 and the cylinder rods are linked to fingers 11 at hole 11A. By operating the cylinders, the fingers are raised or lowered as needed.

FIG. 9 is an end view of the mill showing arrangement of frame 21. brace 26, track 3, bearings 23, saw

mandrel 22, pulley 24, saws 8 and V trough 9. The carriage travels above the saws on track 3 and safety device 25 is provided to avoid derailment of carriage. A pantograph (not shown) will be used to transfer power to and operate the carriage cylinders l2,l3,14,15. The carriage may be propelled by cable feed, water gun or other means.

In FIG. 2 an overall view of the cant trough 31 is shown. This trough has a bottom and two sides and is so constructed with slotted holes in the bottom and sides that adjustment can be made for processing cants of different thickness. There are idler rollers 19 with shafts journaled in bearings and anchored on the sides of the trough 31. These rollers arefor guides and to reduce friction. The saw 1 is mounted on a saw mandrel and anchroed with the bottom of the cant trough to frame 21. Saw 1 is provided with saw guide (not shown). FIG. 5 is a sketch drawing showing saw 1 and the idler rollersfFIG. 11 shows saw 1, the center cant 30 and how fingers 11 pass over and on eachside of saw 1 (the fingers 11 push the cant by the saw without coming into contact with the saw 1). From the aboce description it is obvious that the cant trough 31, saw 1 and the fingers 11 will do the same work as a resaw machine and without an additional operator. It should be noted that adequate space is left between saw 1 and saws 2 for the center cant of the log to be left in the cant trough 31 until the next pass of the carriage.

FIG. is a view showing four saws on the left and four saws on the right. As shown in the drawing, saws 8 will each saw off a slab, saws 6 will each saw off a cant, saws 4 will each saw off a cant, saws 2 will each off a cant and the center cant will be left in the cant trough 31. It is to be noted that the center cant left in the cant trough will be thicker than the other cants. It is to also be noted that the saws 2,4,6,8 are spaced so that as the log passes the saws the slabs and cants will fall free from the saws.

HOW THE SLAB AND CANT MILL WORKS With a log in the V trough 9 at start 32 and the carriage S, with fingers 11 and dogs 10 and 10A raised, moving toward start 32, the operator lowers the front dog 10 and moves rear base 18 and rear dog 10A to the rear of the carriage. When front dog 10 comes in contact with the log, the operator lowers rear dog 10A and mOves the rear base 18 and rear dog 10A froward. As the rear base 18 and rear dog 10A move forward, the dOg teeth on both dogs bite into the ends of the log and locks (dogs) the log to the carriage 5. As soon as the log is dogged to the carriage, the operator reverses the carriage, lowers fingers 11 and starts the carriage moving toward the saws 8,6,4,2. It should be noted that a log is quickly loaded onto the carriage without stopping the carriage.

As the operator moves the carriage 5 forward and log 7 comesinto contact with the first set of saws, a slab will be sawed from each side of the log and, successively, cants will be sawed from the log. When the carriage 5 reaches-stop the final cant of the log, held by the dogs 10 and 10A, will be positioned in the cant of the log, held by the dogs 10 and 10A, will be positioned in the cant trough 31. At this point, the operator releases the final cant by raising the dogs 10 and 10A into the carriage, raises the fingers 11 and reverses direction of the carriage 5. It should be noted that as the carriage with the dogs and fingers raised moves away from stop 20 it will pass above the center cant 30 positioned in the cant trough 31. After the carriage has passed over the cant left in the cant trough, the operator lowers front dog 10. When front dog 10 comes into contact with log 7 placed in V trough 9 while the previous log was cut, the log will be dogged as described agbove. As the carriage moves forward torward the saws 8,6,4,2, the operator lowers the fingers 11. As the fingers l 1 pass saws 2 they will come into contact with the center cant of the previous log that has been held in the cant trough 31. When the carriage 5 reaches stop 20 the fingers 1 1 will have carried the center cant past saw 1 thereby sawing two cants from the single center cant. With the carriage at stop 20 and a new center cant in the cant trough 31, the operator raises the fingers l1 and the dogs 10 and 10A and returns the carriage for another log. The slabs and cants fall away from the saws into a conveyor (not shown) and are carried to the edger and trimmer equipment (not shown) where the cants will be sawed into desired width lumber.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters of Patent is:

l. A simple dogging device for grasping and holding therebetween the log to be sawn; a V trough for positioning the log to be grasped by said dogging device and guiding the dogging device and log past the multiple circular saws; a cant trough for holding and guiding the center log cant past a circular saw; a pair of fingers for pushing the center log cant past said circular saw; our concept whereby cants for triming into lumber are sawn from whole logs with one handling is made possible with a Slab and Cant Mill comprising a long rectangular bed frame upon which the required number of circular caws provided with conventional saw guides are mounted on conventional saw mandrels, journaled in bearings, arranged, spaced, aligned and anchored to said bed frame; a V trough positioned over center line of and anchored on said bed frame extending from rear of said bed frame on a horizontal plane for a distance more than length of longest log to be handled position) loading posiiton) where said V trough declines to a horizontal plane one inch lower than initial plane and then narrows as it extends between the opposed circular sawsto the cant trough, said V trough in log Ioading'position has one side extending higher than the other in order to cause the log as it moves off log transportation chain'onto said V trough to align for grasping by log dogging device, said V trough has groove extending the entire length of said V trough in order to provide guide for dogs; a cant trough longer than the longest length log to be handled positioned over the center line of and anchored to said bed frame between the end of said V trough and forward end of said bed frame comprising a bottom with slot for circular saw, two adjustable sides and idler rollers rotatably anchored to said sides, a single circular saw aligned with center line of said bed frame, positioned through said slot in bottom of cant trough and mounted on saw mandrel; a pair of opposed circular saws placed four and one-quarter inches apart, aligned with and two and one-eighth inches either side of the center line of said bed frame, mounted on saw pair of opposed circular saws spaced thirteen and onequarter inches apart and aligned with and six and fiveeighth inches either side of the center line of said bed frame (more circular saws may be added for handling larger logs); a track supported above multiple circular saws extending the full length of said bed frame, a carriage comprising a carriage frame, rear sliding base, axles and wheels, mounted upon said track with safety device to prevent derailment, said carriage frame has short rectangular slot near frontof frame and long rectangular slot in rear half of frame, said carriage moves in both directions upon said track; a pair of fingers with teeth built into the lower extremity of said fingers, shaft built into upper part of finger body and journaled in bearings, hole set higher up in finger body, said fingers aligned over center line of said bed frame, said bearings anchored to front end of said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected at hole set in said finger body for causing said fingers to lower to their extremity or raise to a height above said circular saws, said fingers in lowered positon push center log cant through cant trough and past single circular saw as said carriage moves on said track; a sliding base containing a short rectangular slot housed on rear half of said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anhored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected to said sliding base for causing said slid ing base to move forward or backward thereby accommodating logs of varing length; said simple dogging device comprising a front dog with pressure cylinders mounted on front of said carriage and a rear dog with pressure cylinders mounted on said rear sliding carriage base, said front dog positioned in said short rectangular slot of carriage frame and aligned over center line of said bed frame comprising teeth built into lower extremity of dog body facing to rear of said carriage for biting into log, a shaft built into upper part of dog body, a hole set higher up in dog body, said shaft journaled in bearings, said bearings anchored to said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said dog to lower to its extremity for grasping log and fitting into said V trough groove or raise up into said carriage frame; said rear dog positioned in said short rectangular slot of said sliding base and aligned over center line of said bed feame comprising teeth built into lower extremity of dog body facing to front of said carriage for biting into log, a shaft built into upper part of dog body, a hole set higher up in dog body, said shaft journaled in bearings, said bearings anchored to said sliding base, pressure cylinders anchored to said sliding base and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said rear dog to lower to its extremity for grasping log and fitting into said V trough groove or raise up into said carriage frame; with front and rear (opposed) dogs lowered to their extremity as said sliding base moves forward, said rear opposed dog will pass between the two short axles (second from rear) and within the long rectangular slot in said carriage frame in order to grasp different length logs, pressure cylinders operated by either air or hydraulic pressure brought from source through hose to pantograph and connected to said cylinders, carriage is moved by water gun, hydraulic cylinder or by cable, means anchored to said bed frame and operatively connected to said carriage frame, said cylinders and means to move carriage are controlled by one operator at stationary place.

2. A simple dogging device according to claim 1 for grasping and holding there between the log to be sawn and comprising a pair of opposed dogs, pressure cylinders and a sliding base, all mounted on a carriage, said dogs comprising teeth built into lower extremity of dog body, a shaft built into upper part of dog body, a hole set higher up in dog body, said shaft journaled in bearings, said bearings anchored to carriage frame; front dog with teeth facing to rear" of carriage, aligned over center line of said bed frame, positioned in said said short rectangular slot in front of said carriage frame and anchored to said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said dog to lower to its extremity or raise up into said carriage frame; rear dog with teeth facing to front of carriage, aligned over center line of said bed frame, positioned in said short rectangular slot of said sliding base and anchored to said sliding base, pressure cylinders anchored to said sliding base and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said rear dog to lower to its extremity or raise up into said carriage frame; said sliding base housed on rear half of said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected to said slidirrg base for causing said sliding base to move forward or backward thereby accommodating logs of varying lengths; said opposed dogs when lowered to their extremity fit into said V trough groove which serves as guide as carriage with log in grasp of said dogs moves down the said track, power required to hold said log when sawing pressure becomes great provided by the distance between center of shaft built into said dog and hole set in top of said dog body; the greater the distance between center of said shaft and hole set in top end of said dog will determine length of pressure cylinders and size cylinders required to supply desired pressure, size of pressure cylinders connected to sliding base determines the amount of pressure applied to end of log, the dogs are of sufficient length to extend from said shaft anchored on carriage frame to the bottom side of log, the lower extremity of dog that makes contact with log is to rear or front of pivot point (bearing) on carriage frame allowing the entire weight of dogs to therear or front of pivot point to apply pressure to the ends of the log, each dog and sliding base individually controlled to allow operator to manipulate dogs and sliding base in such manner as to grasp log and pass by multiple saws leaving center log cant in said cant trough without stopping carriage.

3. A pair of fingers according to claim 1 with teeth built into lower extremity, shaft built into body journaled in bearings,-h'ole set in top of body, said fingers, aligned and anchored to front end of carriage, pressure cylinders anchored to carriage frame, cylinder rods connected at hole in said finger body for causing fingers to lower to their extremity or to raise to a height above saws, with fingers lowered to their extremity said fingers as carriage moves forward will pass inside cant trough pushing cant past circular saw, with a finger passing to each side of saw, body of fingers will pass above saw thereby cutting a single cant into two cants without an additional operator.

4. A cant trough according to claim 1 comprising a bottom with slot for circular saw, two adjustable sides an idler rollers rotatably anchored to said sides; said single circular saw positioned in said slot of cant trough bottom, aligned with center line of said bed frame, mounted on saw manderal, said saw manderal anchored to said bed frame.

5. A V trough according to claim 1 positioned over center line of and anchored on said bed frame extending from rear of said bed frame on a horizontal plane for a distance more than length of longest log to be handled where said V trough declines to a horizontal plane one inch lower than initial plane and then narrows as it extends between said opposed circular saws, said V trough on initial plane has one side extending higher than the other in order to cause the log to align for grasping.

6. According to claim 1, plane of said V trough aligns with center of all circular saws; therefore our invention causes log to automaticly align with saws, provides means for efficiently grasping said log and causes said log to pass nearest the center of each circular saw thereby minimizing power required to drive saws.

7. Our invention according to claim 1 eliminates the need for the log loader, log turner, head blocks and setworks, maximizes board feet cut from log and produces more lumber of wider width from smaller logs than a conventional mill.

8. A Slab and Cant Mill according to claim 1 wherein more than one mill or parts of the mill may be paired or arranged so that variety of type and size timber processed and volume and variety in size of lumber produced will be increased. 

1. A simple dogging device for grasping and holding therebetween the log to be sawn; a V trough for positioning the log to be grasped by said dogging device and guiding the dogging device and log past the multiple circular saws; a cant trough for holding and guiding the center log cant past a circular saw; a pair of fingers for pushing the center log cant past said circular saw; our concept whereby cants for triming into lumber are sawn from whole logs with one handling is made possible with a Slab and Cant Mill comprising a long rectangular bed frame upon which the required number of circular caws provided with conventional saw guides are mounted on conventional saw mandrels, journaled in bearings, arranged, spaced, aligned and anchored to said bed frame; a V trough positioned over center line of and anchored on said bed frame extending from rear of said bed frame on a horizontal plane for a distance more than length of longest log to be handled position) loading posiiton) where said V trough declines to a horizontal plane one inch lower than initial plane and then narrows as it extends between the opposed circular saws to the cant trough, said V trough in log loading position has one side extending higher than the other in order to cause the log as it moves off log transportation chain onto said V trough to align for grasping by log dogging device, said V trough has groove extending the entire length of said V trough in order to provide guide for dogs; a cant trough longer than the longest length log to be handled positioned over the center line of and anchored to said bed frame between the end of said V trough and forward end of said bed frame comprising a bottom with slot for circular saw, two adjustable sides and idler rollers rotatably anchored to said sides, a single circular saw aligned with center line of said bed frame, positioned through said slot in bottom of cant trough and mounted on saw mandrel; a pair of opposed circular saws placed four and one-quarter inches apart, aligned with and two and oneeighth inches either side of the center line of said bed frame, mounted on saw mandrels anchored to said bed frame near entrance to cant trough, to rear of first pair of opposed circular saws a second pair of opposed circular saws spaced eight and threequarter inches apart and aligned with and four and three-eighth inches either side of the center line of said bed frame, still farther to the rear a third pair of opposed circular saws spaced thirteen and one-quarter inches apart and aligned with and six and five-eighth inches either side of the center line of said bed frame (more circular saws may be added for handling larger logs); a track supported above multiple circular saws extending the full length of said bed frame, a carriage comprising a carriage frame, rear sliding base, axles and wheels, mounted upon said track with safety device to prevent derailment, said carriage frame has short rectangular slot near front of frame and long rectangular slot in rear half of frame, said carriage moves in both directions upon said track; a pair of fingers with teeth built into the lower extremity of said fingers, shaft built into upper part of finger body and journaled in bearings, hole set higher up in finger body, said fingers aligned over center line of said bed frame, said bearings anchored to front end of said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected at hole set in said finger body for causing said fingers to lower to their extremity or raise to a height above said circular saws, said fingers in lowered positon push center log cant through cant trough and past single circular saw as said carriage moves on said track; a sliding base containing a short rectangular slot housed on rear half of said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anhored tO said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected to said sliding base for causing said sliding base to move forward or backward thereby accommodating logs of varing length; said simple dogging device comprising a front dog with pressure cylinders mounted on front of said carriage and a rear dog with pressure cylinders mounted on said rear sliding carriage base, said front dog positioned in said short rectangular slot of carriage frame and aligned over center line of said bed frame comprising teeth built into lower extremity of dog body facing to rear of said carriage for biting into log, a shaft built into upper part of dog body, a hole set higher up in dog body, said shaft journaled in bearings, said bearings anchored to said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said dog to lower to its extremity for grasping log and fitting into said V trough groove or raise up into said carriage frame; said rear dog positioned in said short rectangular slot of said sliding base and aligned over center line of said bed feame comprising teeth built into lower extremity of dog body facing to front of said carriage for biting into log, a shaft built into upper part of dog body, a hole set higher up in dog body, said shaft journaled in bearings, said bearings anchored to said sliding base, pressure cylinders anchored to said sliding base and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said rear dog to lower to its extremity for grasping log and fitting into said V trough groove or raise up into said carriage frame; with front and rear (opposed) dogs lowered to their extremity as said sliding base moves forward, said rear opposed dog will pass between the two short axles (second from rear) and within the long rectangular slot in said carriage frame in order to grasp different length logs, pressure cylinders operated by either air or bydraulic pressure brought from source through hose to pantograph and connected to said cylinders, carriage is moved by water gun, hydraulic cylinder or by cable, means anchored to said bed frame and operatively connected to said carriage frame, said cylinders and means to move carriage are controlled by one operator at stationary place.
 2. A simple dogging device according to claim 1 for grasping and holding there between the log to be sawn and comprising a pair of opposed dogs, pressure cylinders and a sliding base, all mounted on a carriage, said dogs comprising teeth built into lower extremity of dog body, a shaft built into upper part of dog body, a hole set higher up in dog body, said shaft journaled in bearings, said bearings anchored to carriage frame; front dog with teeth facing to rear of carriage, aligned over center line of said bed frame, positioned in said said short rectangular slot in front of said carriage frame and anchored to said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said dog to lower to its extremity or raise up into said carriage frame; rear dog with teeth facing to front of carriage, aligned over center line of said bed frame, positioned in said short rectangular slot of said sliding base and anchored to said sliding base, pressure cylinders anchored to said sliding base and cylinder rods connected at hole set in dog body for causing said rear dog to lower to its extremity or raise up into said carriage frame; said sliding base housed on rear half of said carriage frame, pressure cylinders anchored to said carriage frame and cylinder rods cOnnected to said sliding base for causing said sliding base to move forward or backward thereby accommodating logs of varying lengths; said opposed dogs when lowered to their extremity fit into said V trough groove which serves as guide as carriage with log in grasp of said dogs moves down the said track, power required to hold said log when sawing pressure becomes great provided by the distance between Center of shaft built into said dog and hole set in top of said dog body; the greater the distance between center of said shaft and hole set in top end of said dog will determine length of pressure cylinders and size cylinders required to supply desired pressure, size of pressure cylinders connected to sliding base determines the amount of pressure applied to end of log, the dogs are of sufficient length to extend from said shaft anchored on carriage frame to the bottom side of log, the lower extremity of dog that makes contact with log is to rear or front of pivot point (bearing) on carriage frame allowing the entire weight of dogs to the rear or front of pivot point to apply pressure to the ends of the log, each dog and sliding base individually controlled to allow operator to manipulate dogs and sliding base in such manner as to grasp log and pass by multiple saws leaving center log cant in said cant trough without stopping carriage.
 3. A pair of fingers according to claim 1 with teeth built into lower extremity, shaft built into body journaled in bearings, hole set in top of body, said fingers, aligned and anchored to front end of carriage, pressure cylinders anchored to carriage frame, cylinder rods connected at hole in said finger body for causing fingers to lower to their extremity or to raise to a height above saws, with fingers lowered to their extremity said fingers as carriage moves forward will pass inside cant trough pushing cant past circular saw, with a finger passing to each side of saw, body of fingers will pass above saw thereby cutting a single cant into two cants without an additional operator.
 4. A cant trough according to claim 1 comprising a bottom with slot for circular saw, two adjustable sides an idler rollers rotatably anchored to said sides; said single circular saw positioned in said slot of cant trough bottom, aligned with center line of said bed frame, mounted on saw manderal, said saw manderal anchored to said bed frame.
 5. A V trough according to claim 1 positioned over center line of and anchored on said bed frame extending from rear of said bed frame on a horizontal plane for a distance more than length of longest log to be handled where said V trough declines to a horizontal plane one inch lower than initial plane and then narrows as it extends between said opposed circular saws, said V trough on initial plane has one side extending higher than the other in order to cause the log to align for grasping.
 6. According to claim 1, plane of said V trough aligns with center of all circular saws; therefore our invention causes log to automaticly align with saws, provides means for efficiently grasping said log and causes said log to pass nearest the center of each circular saw thereby minimizing power required to drive saws.
 7. Our invention according to claim 1 eliminates the need for the log loader, log turner, head blocks and setworks, maximizes board feet cut from log and produces more lumber of wider width from smaller logs than a conventional mill.
 8. A Slab and Cant Mill according to claim 1 wherein more than one mill or parts of the mill may be paired or arranged so that variety of type and size timber processed and volume and variety in size of lumber produced will be increased. 